M/M Romance by Neena Jaydon

Airgead History and Politics

A Brief History of Wydd

The continent of Wydd was originally divided between gilt elves in the southern grasslands and mountains (where Airgead now stands), argent elves in the central forests, and scorched elves in the north. Continually war and raids led to various uneasy truces. Humans have come and gone, and finally came again with a vengeance. When the scorched and argent elves began to need greater resources for their armies, they eyed the breadbasket of the gilt elf territory. In a move to keep the peace, the gilt elves offered up one of their own as a sacrifice to the spirits of the falls (now known as Blessing Falls). However, the sacrifice’s scorched elf lover comes to the rescue; in the resulting finger-pointing, the three groups descended into war.

The argent elves ultimately won, decimating both the gilt and the scorched sides. They take over most of the continent; however, the humans complicate matters. After decades of fighting, the continent is divided loosely into four: Airgead, able to hold on despite its tiny size because of its political marriages and its trading ties; the modern argent elf kingdom of Risehr; the diverse, trade-heavy country of Hango; and the highly developed, business-oriented Vawlet. Although officially Airgead is diurnal in a nod to its original gilt roots, it is actually to align with human business practices. It is in a far more precarious position, both economically and politically, than its royal family would admit. To balance its loyalties, it is unusually diverse, marrying from various noble clans and making international matches as well.

Technology

Elves have long preferred magic to science. However, over a century ago a curious elf named Maeghilde trimmed her ears to pass as human and stole into Vawlet to learn about their technology. She brought this knowledge back to Airgead, and adapted it to work with magic. This put Airgead at an advantage and in the past manufacturing dominated its economy. Elven devices are powered by aura generated by elven sorcerers. As sorcerers must be trained at Seclusions, where they spend decades studying under strict rules, few younger elves want to become sorcerers. This is putting great strain on the aura supply. Companies such as Riagan’s are trying to find profitable solutions; at the same time, humans are increasingly needed to fill in for lower class elves being aggressively recruited into Seclusions. Increased immigration and a changing labour force is making Airgead confront its prejudices and outmoded ways.